Jan. 1
06:55 am JST

Jan. 1
07:18 am JST

Police detained a man who is believed to be the driver of the rental car with an Osaka license plate. Investigative sources quoted the man who claimed to be in his 20s as saying he has perpetrated an act of terrorism.

Sounds to me more like a lonely punk who felt they had no future and wanted suicide by cop, but since he didn't have a gun, nor his own car, he did the next thing that would most assuredly get him arrested.

Jan. 1
12:06 pm JST

Jan. 1
12:16 pm JST

In many countries "open-space", does not mean a major car intersection, albeit at night, it still remains primarily a vehicular space, a lot needs to change, in regards to open space provision in big cities like Tokyo.

Jan. 1
12:17 pm JST

In NYC on New Years Eve, there are giant concrete barriers to prevent these types of incidents during the ball drop. They also use dump trucks when Trump or his wife are in town to close off 5th Ave. towards Trump Tower. Time for the J-police to start setting these things up during Halloween and New Years and whenever large groups of people are going to gather. Really, all it takes is one nut job - and Japan is full of them - to take out a whole village of people.

Renting a car should also require the renter to undergo a thorough background check: Have they been institutionalized? What do the parents say about their kid's mental state? Two letters of reference from former school teachers. Or better yet, getting a drivers license should require all of the above.

All cars in the future will have automated tech to prevent these types of incidents, but until then...

Jan. 1
12:30 pm JST

The only thing that makes sense to me so far is that he did this in revenge for the executions of the Om Shinro Kyo members this year, specifically Asahara. We all remember the Sarin subway attack, domestic terrorism incarnate.

Jan. 1
06:05 pm JST

This was "in retaliation for an execution" I think NOT just his excuse for being a stupid piece of crap with no idea of what to do with his life. Good that no body was killed, Bad that some people were injured. Great that they caught him before he could hurt anyone else. Fantastic if he gets locked up for life.

Jan. 1
08:55 pm JST

"he had intended to kill the pedestrians he hit "in retaliation for an execution" oh dear it looks like he might be joining the executioner him self! can't the see all he has done? he has put innocent people lives in danger, what have they done to him or the state? if he does not like what the government, prison service has done he needs to aim his anger towards them, not innocent people.

Jan. 1
09:03 pm JST

According to various sites, it seems he was headed to Meiji Jingu but stopped from entering, so he chose Takeshita Dori. When caught and questioned he is said to have uttered the words 「殺そうと思い、通行人をはねた。オウムの死刑に対する報復でやった」

It is possible that his reference to Aum was not reported in the mainstream press as the police are still worried about remaining hidden support for Asahara Shoko, which they are of course, or it is possible that he was simply misheard and misquoted.

Jan. 2
06:35 am JST

Jan. 2
09:42 am JST

It is possible that his reference to Aum was not reported in the mainstream press as the police are still worried about remaining hidden support for Asahara Shoko, which they are of course, or it is possible that he was simply misheard and misquoted.

This was reported in the mainstream Japanese press and in the capsule news put out over LINE.

Jan. 2
01:32 pm JST

Jan. 2
02:06 pm JST

LOL.. Nothing new.. It is not the first nor the last time..! There are many things in the Japanese system and its cultural mentality, that are so wrong and are makeking it's people go crazy up to a point that they don't see any other option but to commit a crime just so they can be heard. Its terrible, for sure, but that is Japan, the number one country in the world for suicides and people killing people because they can take it being shut down and outcassed because they have a different point of view. I am a foreigner and lived in Osaka for the last 20 years!

Jan. 2
02:50 pm JST

Taka a look at the chard:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_in_Japan

Even if it's placed 30th, there is still something wrong. We are talking about Japan not a 3rd world country, here..! It supposed to be relatively safe but not according to many sources like "Wikipedia" which in my opinion should not be taking as a reliable source! All in all is a free world and we all have opinions! What matters is how much brains does an individual has, in order to commit something stupid like that!

Jan. 2
02:55 pm JST

Even if it's placed 30th, there is still something wrong. We are talking about Japan not a 3rd world country, here..!

So what position in the ranking would you consider to be acceptable? Finland is only two places beyond that, with nearly the same rate of suicide. Do your comments apply to Finland as well?

It supposed to be relatively safe

Japan regularly ranks in the top 5 safest countries in the world (they use different metrics). It's very safe.

not according to many sources like "Wikipedia" which in my opinion should not be taking as a reliable source!

Why not? Wikipedia entries either have references, or they note when references are missing and the validity of the article is in question. How is Wikipedia not reliable? And what do you suggest as a reliable source?

Jan. 2
05:28 pm JST

Visitors from abroad usually comment on how safe they feel walking the streets of most Japanese towns. Naturally there are exceptions, and places and people to be aware of, but there is generally no nasty or paranoid vibe to keep you on your toes. This alone must tell us something.

Jan. 3
03:14 pm JST

Mainstream press reports that besides the 18 liter jerry can of kerosene/paraffin he had a pressure pump in the car and was planning to fire a fine kerosene spray at the people gathered in Meiji Jingu, a sort of homemade flame thrower.